|
|
|
|
Life Cycle of the Blacklegged Tick |
|
| For
Lyme disease to exist in an area, at least three closely interrelated
elements must be present in nature: the Lyme disease bacteria, ticks
that can transmit them, and mammals (such as mice and deer) to provide
food for the ticks in their various life stages.
Ticks that transmit Lyme disease can be found in temperate regions
that may have periods of very low or high temperature and a constant
high relative humidity at ground level.
Knowing the complex life cycle of the ticks that transmit Lyme disease is important in understanding the risk of acquiring the disease and in finding ways to prevent it.
The
life cycle of these ticks requires 2 years to complete.
Adult ticks feed and mate on large Larvae feed on mice and other small mammals and birds in the summer and early fall and then are inactive until the next spring when they molt into nymphs. Nymphs feed on small rodents and other small mammals and birds in the late spring and summer and molt into adults in the fall, completing the 2-year life cycle. Larvae and nymphs typically become infected with Lyme disease bacteria when they feed on infected small animals, particularly the white-footed mouse. The bacteria remain in the tick as it changes from larva to nymph or from nymph to adult. Infected nymphs and adult ticks then bite and transmit Lyme disease bacteria to other small rodents, other animals, and humans, all in the course of their normal feeding behavior. Lyme
Disease Website Directory Penn
State Entomology Directory Site
Administrator |
